Waterbury evening Democrat., 1887-12-07
CHAPTER VIII.
AN APPALLING STRUGGLE.

CHAPTER VIII.
 AN APPALLING STRUGGLE.
 Once more we were on board and awayi We would soon know whether we were to have clear track at Adairsville or to re- peat the vexatious and dangerous experi- ence of Kingston. Once more the engine was given full force; we in the box car were thrown from side to side, sometimes little roughly; but this did not diminish our joy over the rapid motion which was 'devouring" the distance between us and our friends in Tennessee! As we came in sight of the station, there to our great satisfaction lay the freight train, which, indeed, had long been waiting for us, as we were now half hour behind the time of Fuller's passenger train, and also waiting for the morning passenger train from Chattanooga, which should have overtaken the freight at this point, but which was also late. Indeed, the panic in Chattanooga and the extra trains on the road had disordered the whole schedule and enormously increased our difficulties. As we came near the sta tion, speed was slackened and we stopped on tho main track beside the through freight. Andrews at once answered the usual storm of questions and asked others in turn. He heard. still more of Mitchel's operations, how he seemed to have captured all their trains on the western road, so that for twenty four hours not Q car had got through and that the tele- grams were being interrupted further and further up the road, so that, from every indication, he was coming to Chattanooga But Andrews was still more interested in asking news of the down passenger train, which was now half an hour late No in- formation was received, but the freight conductor had determined to run on south on the arrival of Fuller's train, in har- mony with their rule of railroading at that time, by which following train was to be waited for only a certain length of time, after which the waiting train had the right to proceed. Andrews approved of that intention, saying that Fuller with the regular train would probably wait for him at Kingston. Andrews might have held this train here by giving a message as from Fuller, but he preferred to get rid of it, so that if compelled to back before the belated passenger, it might not be in the way; and if compelled to fight, the fewer of the enemy the better; otherwise it's running down to the place of the bro ken. rail was undesirable. The conductor said to Andrews:
 'You of course will remain here until my passenger train comes, and tell them to overhaul me at Kingston!''
 "No," returned Andrews, II must gc at once! the fate of the army hangs on my getting promptly through with those car loads of ammunition. Suppose the Yan- kees attack Beauregard! He has not pow der enough for three hours fight.'
 This was a startling possibility, and forgetting all about Mitchell being in the way, the conductor (the men on both sides had heard the conversation, but had not | joined in it) periodically said:
 "Get through by all means; but you will have to run very slow and put flag man out on every curve, or you will have collision"
 Andrews answered quickly: "I will attend to that;" stepped on his own engine and motioned to Knight, who was stil at the throttle. The latter, hearing the words about running slowly, had put on the steam in a gradual manner, and the engine glided away at moderate rate of speed. But this was not to last; neither was any flagman to be sent ahead; there had | been delays enough. The time had come | We dared not wait for the passenger train because of the pursuers we had heard, and of tho freight which had started toward the h%aaAk; aak;; and skse- na,aSt resch the station above before the passenger started out! From Adairsville to Calhoun, She next station that had side track is little more than nine miles, The road runs di- rectly north is almost straight, and but little removed from level; this is the most favorable stretch for running On the whole line Andrews said to his comrades: "Make her show how fast she can go; every sec ond saved in getting to Calhoun counts. y l o%E1 @A ol> &<w whose nerves had all morning been thrill ing with suppressed fire may be imagined The engine was in the finest running con- dition. Knight had oiled it carefully dur 1 ing the long waiting at Kingston, and again, ill part, at Adairsville, and heavy pressure of steam had accumulated during the pause at the latter station. Now the full force of the mighty power was turned on at once, while oil was poured on sticks and these fed into the furnace. The three cars and twenty men were no load for the powerful engine, and it sprung to it's work with a shock that nearly tcok every man from his feet! The race against time which followed was grand and terrible The en- zine seemed to be not so much running as coursing with great ionlike bounds along the track, and the spectacle from the loco. motive as it rose and fell in it's ceaseless rapid motion, while houses, fields and woods rushed by, was wonderful and glorious, almost worth the risk to enjoy! In the box car we were thrown from side to side and jerked about in manner that bafhes description. The car was so close to the engine that it felt every impulse of power and there was no following train to steady it. Many times we were startled with the momentary conviction that we were of the track; but there was no cessation O1 ] our rapid flight. We hardly knew what it meant, and though we pushed our dool partly open, the risk of being thrown out was too great to permit us to open it wide and gazing at the panorama that fitted by, with lightning like rapidity, we could gain no clew to this frantic and perilous chase, for there was no indication of fol lowing train that we could perceive There was no danger of being seen in tht opening of our door, for the rapid flight ol the train would have attracted all the at tention that anything upon the car could Andrews scarcely looked ahead while making this run. Brown and Knight however, did keep a sharp lookout, sim ply for the purpose of seeing when W, came near the station that they migh shut off steam and be able to stop there They had no hope of reversing or stop ping, if they saw the belated passengel !. train approaching. As we'll try to reverst q cannon ball in its flightl If the train hat started out from Calhoun before we cam, |